02-May-2021 -- This is the first out of 5 confluence visits on our drive through the North-East of Namibia. On the 5th of December 2020 I flew to Namibia for a bicycle trip. After spending 3 months in South Africa we returned to Namibia.

We have been travelling and working in Southern Africa from our laptops for 5 months now as our offices in Switzerland are closed. Before finally returning to Switzerland, we took the last week off from work for a road trip through the North-East of Namibia.

After working 2 weeks in Swakopmund, we rented a 4WD and drove northwards to the Skeleton Coast. The first night, we stayed in Terrace Bay, the northern most place along the coast that you can reach without a special permit. The next morning, when I looked at the paper map to make today’s plan, I accidentally saw that there is an unvisited confluence point in the sea – only 3.7 km distance from our guesthouse!

Certainly, there was no chance of reaching the confluence point. One must know that this coast is dangerous for ships – there are hundreds of ship-wrecks – due to the constant onshore winds that make it almost impossible to leave the deserted coast once stranded. There are also no natural and no artificial harbours, no fishing boats and no touristic boat-trips. But interestingly, the nearest place on land is exactly Terrace Bay. So I only had to walk 200 m to the beach to document this incomplete visit.

After the visit, we had to leave the coastline in order to get further northwards as the northern part of the Skeleton Coast is a forbidden zone. Asked why, locals have different answers, but it seems that the restrictions arise from the claim of diamond mines in the area.

CP Visit Details:

• Distance to a road: 3700 m
• Distance to a track: 3600 m
• Distance of car parking: 3600 m
• Time to reach the nearest place to confluence from the car: 3 minutes
• Time at the confluence: 7:51 AM
• Measured height: 161 m (strange, should be zero – error of GPS)
• Minimal distance according to GPS: 3510 m
• Position accuracy: 3 m
• Topography: flat
• Weather: clear sky, 18° C (felt temperature)
• Given Name: The Deadly Coast Confluence

The story continues at 20°S 14°E. Pictures of our trip can be found here.

Off shore in the Terrace Bay